The exocet is cheap, effective, and can be launched from submarines, ships, and aircraft. In 1982, during the falklands war, argentine navy dassaultbreguet super etendard. How do you think they were going to introduce a code into a missile. Ian sparks and matthew hickley, ill nuke argentina. The sas mission to destroy argentinian exocet missiles. By the time of the armed conflict between argentina and the uk, it had only been tested in target practice in secret french facilities. The frenchmade exocet antiship missile played a major role in the falklands war. An exocet missile destroyed hms sheffield during the falklands war a the first major british casualty of the falklands war conflict.
The exocet french for flying fish is a french antiship missile developed in the 1970s. Pdf in response to the argentine invasion of the falkland islands in 1982, a large naval task. Exocet definition and meaning collins english dictionary. The frenchbuilt exocet missile was a low flying and lethal missile.
Action could have been taken to minimize injury, including men being sent to action stations and turning the ship towards the exocet missiles to narrow its profile. Hints that there has been an official coverup over failure of the frigate hms sheffield to take action against incoming argentine exocet missiles in the 1982 falklands conflict have been denied. The falklands war the untold story full documentary timeline duration. Antiship the solidrocketpowered, active radarhoming french exocet, fired from both aircraft and ground launchers. Disturbing overconfidence by commanders at home was finely counterbalanced by stirring accounts of inspiring physical and moral courage across the south atlantic. Guillot, then the technical director at nord aviation. The guidance section is located in the front and is followed by the warhead. Westinghouse antps43 long range 3d radar that the argentine air force deployed to guard the airspace surrounding the falklands.
The untold story of special forces operations southbytailyour, ewen on. Maggie issued the ultimate threat to extract exocet secrets from mitterrand, daily mail, 5 january 2006, 5 july 2006. Hms sheffield is sunk by an argentinian exocet missile in the falklands war 1982. Exocet missile that sank sheffield, for instance, would not have been able. The falklands war understanding the power of context in. The exocet is a family of french antiship missiles that can be launched from several platforms like aircrafts, helicopters, high or low tonnage warships and submarines. The exocet, which became famous for sinking several british ships during the 1982 falklands war, will be getting an upgraded guidance system, according to.
Udviklingen begyndte i 1967, som et skibsaffyret missil navngivet mm. British soldiers were operating under poor intelligence. The overall lessons of the falklands conflict are currently being studied in great detail by a study group formed by the secretary of defense. The sheffield was not the only ship to be attacked, however. Most of the missile is made up by the single stage solid propellant rocket motor which powers the missile. The exocet is a conventional missile with a cylindrical body, pointed nose and cruciform wings in the middle and at the rear. The famous codes that were missing to activate them were neither codes nor to activate the missiles. Jul 20, 2016 inskip wrote ordeal by exocet hms glamorgan and the falklands war 1982 2002, reissued 2012, one of the best books about war at sea in the age of the missile. The french have a history of stabbing their allies in the back. London prince andrew used his helicopter to decoy deadly exocet missiles fired from argentine war jets and was hailed a hero for rescuing british sailors from the sinking atlantic conveyor. It can be launched from strike aircraft, maritime patrol aircraft and helicopters. France sold exocet missiles to the argentine government prior to the falklands war. That effort is expected to be completed in the summer of 1983. The untold story of special forces operations by ewen southbytailyour isbn.
It is a seaskimming weapon that achieved notoriety in. Hms sheffield was a type 42 guided missile destroyer. Hms sheffield was a type 42 guided missile destroyer and the second royal navy ship to be named after the city of sheffield in yorkshire. Exocet falklands by ewen southbytailyour 2017, paperback. This thesis examines the historical effectiveness of antishipcruise missiles used in littoral warfare. From japans point of view considered one of the most capable navies in all of latin america. The peruvian exocet connection in the falklandsmalvinas war. Falkland wars and deadly exocet missiles discussion in.
Bibliography on the 1982 falklands war rand corporation. Can exocet missiles be remotely disabled with secret codes. What happened to exocet sales after the falklands war. Dec 27, 2012 thatcher urged to steal frenchmade exocet missiles during falklands war. Exocet missile in the falklands war page 2 indian defence. Mar 10, 2009 on may 29 2006 two hellenic greek navy super vitatype facms, the hs rousen p67 and hs daniolos p68, each fired one mbda mm40 block 2 exocet surfacetosurface missile against hs. Thankfully, none actually went ahead but the authors main. Argentine exocets destroyed hms sheffield, the atlantic conveyor and damaged hms glamorgan. Exocet falklands is a groundbreaking work of investigative military history from which many salutary lessons can be learned. This is a revelatory account of three untabulated special forces operations, plum duff, mikado and kettledrum, that were tasked to destroy argentinas exocet missiles during the 1982 falkland s campaign. The secret disastrous sas attempt to invade argentina. France was britains greatest ally during the falklands war, providing secret information to enable mi6 agents to sabotage exocet missiles which were desperately sought by. The falkland islands conflict included the first truly naval con frontation since. Pope francis linked to exocet acquisition in falklands war.
The frenchmade exocet missile is iraqs weapon of choice for airlaunched attacks on shipping in the persian gulf. In 1982, during the falklands war, argentine navy dassault breguet super etendard. On 2 may, the british submarine hms conqueror hit and sank the argentine cruiser general belgrano and an argentine exocet missile torpedoed hms sheffield. The original exocet missile, the sealaunched mm38, was developed in 1967 and entered into service in 1975. It is evident that fleet protection vessels did not have the ability to remotely disable argentine exocet missiles. Prince andrew used his helicopter to decoy deadly exocet. Inskip wrote ordeal by exocet hms glamorgan and the falklands war 1982 2002, reissued 2012, one of the best books about war at sea in the age of the missile. The block 3 exocet is lighter than the previous mm40 block 2 exocet. National interest and the falklands war springerlink.
The guided missile destroyer hms sheffield was the first major loss suffered by the british task force during the 1982 falklands war. While the ships company were aware of the threat posed by exocet missiles, some appear to have thought the. A type 42 guided missile destroyer became the first british ship to be sunk during the falklands war. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
Oct 15, 2017 the british public became fascinated by the exocet missile after one sunk hms sheffield shortly after the outbreak of the falklands war in 1982. Commencing in september of 1981, the present pope francis 1 acted as an agent for the argentine military junta to acquire exocet missiles which were used against the royal navy flotilla during the falklands war the following year. Missile leakage rates, probability of hit on a given target, and small combatant staying power with respect to exocet missile equivalents are derived from historical data. She was lost as a result of a wellaimed exocet missile fired by the argentines during the conflict. Hms sheffield was launched in june 1971 and was commissioned for service in february 1975. Exocet missile in the falklands war indian defence forum. True scale of disastrous sas mission to destroy argentinian exocet missiles is retold by servicemen on both sides of the falklands war. Seacat and tigercat surfacetoair missiles were obsolete by the falklands. Exocet falklands by ewen southbytailyour overdrive. France gave the uk a lot of help during the falklands war, but a technical team in argentina helped the country fire exocet missiles at british warships. The peruvian exocet connection in the falklandsmalvinas. This is a fascinating account of three sas missions to counter the exocet missile during the 1982 falklands war, ranging from illthought out ideas to near suicidal oneway trips onto enemy soil. The brits were lucky in that war, some of the ordnance dropped by the argentinian super etrands hit the british ships but did not explode.
May 18, 1987 the frenchmade exocet missile is iraqs weapon of choice for airlaunched attacks on shipping in the persian gulf. She was struck by an exocet airlaunched antiship missile from an argentinian super etendard aircraft on 4 may 1982 and. First launched in june of 1971, the ship was then commissioned for service in february of 1975. There are six exocet variants, which differ by their launch platforms and levels of modernization. The exocet is probably the most famous weapon of the war, sinking two british ships and damaging a third. The untold story of special forces operations9781473872103. The brits were lucky in that war, some of the ordnance dropped by the argentinian super etrands hit. Mar 29, 2014 the secret disastrous sas attempt to invade argentina revealed. And if argentina had more of them it would had been deadly for the british. How exactly were the exocet missiles disabled with codes. Sep 21, 2012 exocet am39 is the airtosurface version of the exocet family. The block 3 missile accepts gps guidance system waypoint commands, which allow it to attack naval targets from different angles and to strike land targets, giving it a marginal role as a landattack missile. The exocet missile series of french shortrange antiship cruise missile. Exocet am39 is the airborne version of the exocet antiship missile family.
The exocet weighed about 1,500 pounds and had an effective range of 35 to 40 miles. I head read somewhere on the internet that at the time of the war the argentina only had less than 10 exocet missiles and with such few missiles they had destroyed 3 british destroyers. While lacking in warhead size and range, this battletested missile is still in production. Exocet definition of exocet by the free dictionary. But it also exposes the weakness of the destroyers against air launched antiship missiles. Falklands community volunteers launches program in support of those in self isolation. Thatcher urged to steal frenchmade exocet missiles during. The british public became fascinated by the exocet missile after one sunk hms sheffield shortly after the outbreak of the falklands war in 1982.
In the falklands war, crack troops go on a suicidal mission to storm galtieris exocet missile base. Timeline world history documentaries recommended for you. Jan 15, 2011 france sold exocet missiles to the argentine government prior to the falklands war. How france helped us win falklands war, by john nott. It is a seaskimming weapon that achieved notoriety in the falkland war, when. Although this war is well known for the overwhelming victories of the. However, there are reports that french officials attempted to contain the exocet threat by giving the british government inside information into the missiles and how to defend against them. Operated by both sides the missile was used by the argentine navy either air launched from dassault super etendard jets and from an improvised land launcher. The french made exocet am39 was sea skimming antiship missile which had been developed by aerospatiale. Exocet synonyms, exocet pronunciation, exocet translation, english dictionary definition of exocet. Work on the am39, the airlaunched variant, began in 1974 and entered service in 1979.
Declassified files finally expose failures that allowed. Fire between the two forces was first exchanged on april 25. The purpose of this report is to present an unclassified summary of the. Hms sheffield was hit by an exocet missile fired by the argentinian air force on 4 may 1982 and sank while being towed. It is the french word for flying fish from the latin name exocoetus, a transliteration of the greek name for flying fish.
Centenas desses misseis foram lancados em combate durante os anos 1980. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading exocet. In order for the missiles to work the targeted radar had to transmit up until the missiles impacted. List of 6 british ships sunk during the falklands war. On may 4, sheffield was detected by argentine super etendard which launched its exocet missile, hitting the ship above the waterline and causing a. Thankfully, none actually went ahead but the authors main argument is that action is no substitute for thought. Although argentina had only a small number of the airlaunched version their presence was a constant worry for the british task force and a significant influence on tactics. The secret disastrous sas attempt to invade argentina revealed. Exocet am39 can be launched from strike aircraft, maritime patrol aircraft and helicopters. With a range of up to 70 km, depending on the altitude and speed of the aircraft, the exocet am39 enables the. Commander ian inskip, attacked by an exocet missile in the. Falkland wars and deadly exocet missiles pakistan defence. Commissioned on 16 february 1975 the sheffield was part of the task force 317 sent to the falkland islands during the falklands war. These are the mm38, mm40, mm40 block 2, and mm40 block 3 sea and groundlaunched models, the am39 airlaunched model, and the sm39 sublaunched variant.
This is a revelatory account of three untabulated special forces operations, plum duff, mikado and kettledrum, that failed to destroy argentinas exocet missiles during the 1982 falkland s campaign. These are some of the key weapons of the falklands war used by both sides. The exocet french for flying fish is a frenchbuilt antiship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixedwing aircraft. Frances exocet navykiller missile is getting an update. In that context alone this book is of international military importance. She was guarding the outer perimeter of the task force which made her vulnerable to attack. The ship was hit on the starboard side, ripping a hole 15ft long and 4ft high. Argentina missile chronology nuclear threat initiative. Every page goes through several hundred of perfecting techniques. How france helped both sides in the falklands war bbc news.